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This chapter treats metaphor as a form of linguistic expression rather than as a form of conceptual representation. Metaphor as a form of substitution is critically analyzed and found wanting. Three other traditionally held assumptions are also critically examined: (1) literal meaning is basic and has unconditional priority; (2) figurative meaning is derivative from the literal; (3) metaphor understanding is more complex that literal understanding. These three assumptions are rejected on the basis of pragmatics as well as on theoretical and empirical considerations.

This chapter treats metaphor as a form of linguistic expression rather than as a form of conceptual representation. Metaphor as a form of substitution is critically analyzed and found wanting. Three other traditionally held assumptions are also critically examined: (1) literal meaning is basic and has unconditional priority; (2) figurative meaning is derivative from the literal; (3) metaphor understanding is more complex that literal understanding. These three assumptions are rejected on the basis of pragmatics as well as on theoretical and empirical considerations.